Intertwined Learning
by goodlittlegirl
Summary: Chapter 4 & 5 Added! A fifteen year old girl learns about love the hard way. Now she must learn that love is not forceful or hurtful. But, she must also learn, some things must be kept secret. Tell me What you Think...
1. Meeting

Chapter 1 - Meeting  
  
I still can't believe that I write in this silly pink diary almost everyday. But it's so comforting to have something to go back to that is familiar... never changing. It's something that was always here to listen. But lately, I feel like something is going to change, and I'm afraid that I don't want to know what it is.  
  
I walked into the brightly lit entrance of Sean Sliabh High School, thankful for the warm shelter from the bitter wind and rain outside. It was only the middle of October, yet the weather was already biting cold at your nose, freezing everything it touched. I brushed a few strands of strawberry blonde hair out of my face and looked up. I found my friends and waved slightly, walking over to them and immediately smiling. Lynn Herring, someone I just met, was standing over to the side of my usual group of friends, obviously shy and not in the mood to put herself out there. "What are you doing standing over here looking lonely?" I teased her. I grabbed her below the elbow and pulled her into the crowded circle. I don't see how Lynn could be so shy. Her looks give her away as someone who would be outgoing, even a bit harsh at times. Her brown eyes soft and a bit large, gave me the image of an owl every time I saw her. Her nose was slightly curved and pointy, enhancing her owlish structure. I've always admired her for her looks, maybe even a little jealous, but something I've never shown.  
In the crowd, I was instantly greeted by Valerie.  
"Hey Alex," she said, her wavy hair dyed black and falling just below her shoulders. I missed her light brown hair. It tanned her skin and matched her beautiful green eyes perfectly.  
"Hey Val. What's up? You didn't manage to do your history homework, did you?" I asked, batting my eyelashes innocently.  
"Do you ever do your homework?" She reached into her bag and pulled out a white sheet of paper.  
I skimmed over it. "I can't bloody read your writing! What does that say? Oblivious?"  
She scowled. "Revolution," she said as she snatched for the paper, her fingers only grasping air.  
We both laughed. "You know I'm just kidding. I'll give it to you before English class," I assured her as the bell rang for homeroom.  
I scurried down the hallway, planning out what homework to do in what class in order to avoid late assignments. Just then I felt an itching at the back of my neck. I scratched at it and looked up, seeing Owen Fowler from my Study Hall looking at me. Our eyes locked, his blue eyes searching mine. Heat rose to my cheeks, instantly turning them a light pink. I looked down as he passed, smiling to myself as I entered my homeroom, still imagining those blue eyes. 


	2. The Kiss

Chapter 2 - The Kiss  
By the end of the day, I was sick of doing school work. I went to the cafeteria, wondering if I might have a chance at seeing Owen again. Looking around, I didn't even notice Val walking up to me, Catrina trailing behind her. She looked at me, then gave me a light smack on the arm. Jumping from the stinging sensation, I looked at her.  
"Oh, hey. What's up?" I smiled at Catrina. Her blonde hair was pulled into a tight bun at the base of her neck, and her brown eyes looking around the open cafeteria, obviously searching for her other friends. Catrina wasn't very accepting that I was Val's friend. I always got the feeling like she wanted to be elsewhere, or at any moment, she was going to steal Val away, which immediately made competition between the two of us. Val stated, "I just wanted to let you know that I'll be outside if you need me," as she walked off with Catrina at her side.  
I looked around the now crowded cafeteria, not spotting Owen anywhere. I sat down abruptly, annoyed by my need to seek him out.  
"Looking for someone?" a familiar voice asked me from behind. My cheeks blushed as I turned around to see Owen standing there, his brown hair tousled by the way he runs his hand through it when he's nervous. He smiled at me, making my heart melt.  
"Uh, not anyone in particular," I said, trying to sound convincing. I bent over, and unzipped my book bag, getting out my math book, but not intending to do anything with it.  
"Do you want to go walk around?" he asked me, trying to get me to look into his eyes.  
I looked up, letting him succeed in catching my attention. I stumbled for words. "Um, I-I guess so." I left my bag sitting on the floor by my chair and stood up, straightening my shirt. "Where do you want to go?"  
"No place in particular," he joked, flashing me a grin.  
We walked through the hallways, talking about our likes and dislikes, classes, even our families. I don't know how many times we walked around the school. He stopped and I dared a glance at him. He caught my eyes with his own and took a step closer to me. I felt his soft hand on my chin and his other on my hip, pulling me closer. He tilted my head up and softly brushed his lips upon mine, taking my breath away. I deepened the kiss a little, my mind empty but for this moment... and a pin point annoyance at the back of it. I shyly pulled away, still holding his waist. I was so consumed by his eyes, his lips, that everything around me seemed out of focus.  
I looked at my watch reluctantly, shocked that my ride home was supposed to be picking me up right then. "I have to go," I said, more loudly than needed.  
  
He squeezed my hand one last time, and without looking back I ran to get my bag and headed out of there. 


	3. Arguments

Chapter 3 - Arguments Will my parents ever leave me alone?!  
  
When I got home, my dad was in the living room watching a movie, half asleep, and my mom was nowhere in the house. I went into my room and got onto the computer which was older than the hills. I checked my AOL Instant Messenger Buddy List and it turned out that everyone I wanted to talk to was away. I sighed out of frustration. I didn't want to be here.  
  
I snapped off the monitor and tried to make an effort to do my homework the night before it was due, not the period before. I sat there, staring at the pages of math homework, and the phone rang. I ran to answer it, knowing my dad would be upset if he had to wake up. "Hello?" I said into the receiver. Silence.  
  
"Hello..."  
  
A raspy voice spoke so quietly I had to strain my ears to hear him. "I need to see you," it said. "Who is this?" I started to panic, fear striking my heart, making it race. "Please, come to the library, I need to see you..."  
  
Click. The receiver clicked off. I turned off the phone, not knowing what to do, but it sounded like someone I knew. Could it be Owen? As quietly as I could, I grabbed my overlarge sweatshirt and headed back outside. The library was only a few blocks from my house, and I could use the get- away from homework and home, for that matter. Five minutes later, I was walking outside a red brick building, the library. Its lights illuminated it like a snow globe with sleet flying around it. I went up the steps to the glass front door and swung it open, closing it quickly behind me as a rush of air trailed inside. I looked around and saw nobody I knew. I went to the back of the library, where all my favorite books were. I loved reading about the Salem Witch Trials; even stuff like Hocus Pocus intrigued me. I think deep down I knew there was such a thing as witchcraft, but my mother had always told me otherwise. Her view on it was that you can't do everything that you can do in the movies. There was no such thing as magic to her. So, being my mother, I believed her. Just then, I scratched my neck and heard a voice behind me whisper in my ear, making me jump. "I didn't think you'd come." I turned around quickly, relieved to see that it was just Owen. I smiled at him, but he looked different somehow. His eyes held a mantic gleam that I had never seen before. My smile faded and I tried to back away, but only hit bookshelves. He moved closer to me, making a move to kiss me. I turned my head, but he kissed my neck instead. I put my hands on his chest and pushed hard against him, but making no difference in the distance between us. He looked angry by this point. "There's no need to fight it. You know you want to." He put one hand over my mouth and pressed his hips into mine. I was too shocked to do anything but look at his eyes and wish this was all a dream. He kept me against the shelves, and then his other hand went beneath my shirt and was on my stomach when I knew I wasn't dreaming at all. I let out an unnoticed scream of danger, but no one heard. Of course no one heard, I'm in the back of the library and I hardly saw anyone here at this time of night back here. I tried to push him away, but that didn't help at all. So, when all else fails, go to the movies. I kneed him in the groin and he cried out in agony. I took advantage of the situation--Owen doubled over in pain a few feet from me--and I ran. It only took me a few minutes to get home, not as long as it took for me to get to the library. As soon as I walked though the door, my mother and father were sitting there in the living room, looking up at me with anger showing on their faces. "Where have you been?" My mother asked, her eyes narrowing. "I, uh, had to go to the library for a book, but they didn't have it," I replied lamely. My cheeks were tear stained, but they didn't seem to notice. If they did, maybe they just didn't care. I just ignored them and went to my room, closing the door a little harder than needed. Apparently my father came after me because he swung the door open, making it rap loudly on my dresser behind it. His words were nothing more than a jumble of gibberish, for I was so angry that he was raising his voice to me, my face fell red and my mind set. I turned around and looked at him. He tripped and fell backwards hard on his back, the door swinging shut behind him and locking, something I'm not supposed to do. I didn't care. 


	4. Secrets

Chapter 4 - Secrets How could he do something like that? Why did he do it? I don't understand. He seemed like a good guy. I'm not going to tell anyone. Nobody needs to know.  
  
The next day at school, Lynn could tell something was wrong. She asked me a few times what was the matter. The only thing I could tell her was that I got into an argument with my parents, which was true to an extent. There were so many times when I just wanted to tell her, just to get it off my chest. But in the end, all I could do was keep quiet. Val didn't seem to notice anything was different. Maybe she was too consumed in all her other friends to notice, but I wasn't feeling social, so I just stood back. I went through the day in a kind of haze, as if watching myself from above. Amazingly, I finished all my homework before three o' clock that afternoon, and was stressed when I had nothing to hide behind. To save myself troubles, I went to my locker to drop my bag off so I wouldn't need to carry it home. As I twisted the combination and opened the door, I looked down the hallway to see Owen approaching me. He seemed really angry, making me extremely nervous. Don't you tell anyone about last night, or I'll kill you," he mumbled as he passed. This brought tears to my eyes. I covered my mouth, as if this would hold back my sobs, and I went to the girls' bathroom and cried. A few minutes later, I forced myself to pull it together. I unlatched the door and came out of the stall, chancing a look in the mirror. My eyes were puffy and my nose was pink. I looked like total hell. I walked to the entrance of the high school, waiting for my bus to arrive. Lynn came up to me and gave me a much needed hug. She looked me in the eye and told me, "If you ever need someone to talk to, you know I'm here for you. Just give me a ring and I'll be there." She smiled comfortingly. I nodded and returned her smile. "Thanks," I replied. At home, I engrossed myself in chores. It was something to take my mind off of the situation. I cleaned the dishes that were piled high in the sink, vacuumed the living room and the dining room, able to tell the carpet was a light beige color afterwards, and I swept the kitchen, no longer feeling the gritty dirt and grime underneath my bare feet. After I finished making the house look extraordinarily presentable, I went to my room and shut the door. Turning on some classical and relaxing music, I sat on my bed, curled up beneath the worn comforter and read a book, one of my favorites, Sweep by Cate Tiernan. Around nine-thirty, I got up and went down the hallway, stopping at the closet that held towels, grabbing a fluffy purple one. As I was taking a shower, I scrubbed my hair and body hard, as if this could wash away more than just dirt--all of my problems. Keeping to myself all afternoon felt nice. Wrapped in my bath towel, I went into my room where I dressed into my plaid pants and a large t-shirt. I turned out the light and lay down gently, my back hurting and bruised from the night before. As my head hit the pillow, I was instantly hit by sleep. 


	5. Unwanted Realizations

Chapter 5 - Unwanted Realizations  
Five days later, I was in the lunch room, doing homework and talking with Lynn and one of her friends, Alicia. Alicia has pretty brown eyes, dirty blonde curly hair, and a rounded face. She was a nice acquaintance, but nobody I could really talk to. I was just about to put away my math book when Lynn grabbed my arm and leaned across the table, whispering to me, "Oh my god, that guy is looking at you, Alex!" I made a move to turn around to look, but she said urgently, "Don't turn around. Don't look." "Will you at least tell me who this guy is, so I can avoid him?" I asked, only half joking. Ever since the incident with Owen, I had tried to avoid him, and any other guy, at all costs. To me, all boys were Owen and the same thing would happen again. She pushed my arm away, sounded slightly annoyed, "Oh, Alex. Don't be so rueful. He has black hair, kind of looks Italian. Sexy, Sexy." She wiggled her eyebrows at me suggestively. I laughed, "What grade?" "Tenth I think..." She leaned over to Alicia and asked her, then confirmed. "Yea, he's in tenth grade." I sighed. I put my notebook and calculator into my black bag and zipped it up, smoothly stealing a peek at this mysterious admirer. I looked back at Lynn, asking, "Didn't he go out with Sylvia? You know, the really prude girl who tries to deny it at all costs." I hated that word, but everyone else used it to describe her, and it seemed there was no other description. She looked thoughtful for a moment. "Yea, I think so. Why?" "Oh, just wondering. I'm going to head out of here. Want to come?" Please, Lynn. I need to talk to you. She looked over to Alicia, questioning herself. "Uh, sure. Do you want to come?" she asked her. Alicia shook her head. We walked out of the cafeteria, heading for the library when I knew that I needed to tell her. I stopped her in the empty hallway and looked down at my feet, ashamed at myself for having to tell her about this, and that I hadn't told her sooner. "Lynn, I need to talk to you about something," I told her, clearly understating the situation. Fresh tears threatened to fall from my eyes, though I willed them away. Her eyes shone with worry. "What is it?" she asked lightly, not pressing me. "I, uh... I had a sort of fling with Owen Fowler. You know him, right?" The tears wouldn't stop. One fell, making a path for the others to follow. Her face contorted to slight disgust. She didn't like Owen. "Yea. What happened? Are you okay?" "Well, no. I'm not okay. He--he forced himself onto me in the library late one night." My voice cracked and I broke into sobs, no longer able to hold back the feelings wanting to burst inside me. "I don't know why he did it. Was it me?" "No," she told me strongly. "Nothing is wrong with you. It's him. You should know by now that he isn't a virgin and all he wants is sex." She sighed. "When did it happen?" I sniffed, my nose already clogged, making it harder to breathe. "Last week," I said weakly. Even though I was in this situation, I still felt like she wouldn't give up on me. I felt like she would always be there, no matter what happened. "Is this what was wrong? Oh, I'm so sorry," she said, pulling me into a tight hug. I pulled back for a moment, telling her how I felt like every guy was going to do that to me, that I couldn't trust another guy again. She didn't say anything, just pulled me back into a comforting hug as the bell rang, ending the period. As we were departing to our separate classes, she told me, "Not every guy is going to be Owen. But I know it's going to be hard to trust someone after what happened. I still say take some time. Time can heal just about anything. And I promise, it will get better for you. Just trust yourself." She smiled and walked away, and I took her words to heart. I think hearing them sunk in more than telling them to myself. No matter how much I didn't want to admit it, I knew she was right. 


End file.
